Emirates Airline and Airbus signed a $ 16 billion memorandum of understanding (MoU) for 36 A380s on Thursday in a deal that would expand the plane’s 10-year-long production after it was threatened with a final halt.
This was reported by AFP news agency.
The deal includes 20 confirmed and 16 optional aircraft, the group said in a statement, quoting the agreement that the new deal will increase its A380 fleet to 178 aircraft with a total value of about 60 billion dollars.
The A380, the world’s largest A380 passenger, will start delivery in 2020 with the airline currently having 101 aircraft of this type, while the other first order aircraft, including 41 aircraft of the same model, are expected to arrive.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and CEO of Emirates Group, signed the Memorandum of Understanding with Airbus CEO John Leahy at the Emirates Group headquarters in Dubai.
“We do not make a secret if we say the A-308 was a complete success for Emirates,” Sheikh Ahmed said.
“Our customers love to travel on board, and we have been able to operate them for many destinations within our global network because they have provided us with flexibility in terms of flight and seat capacity.”
Airbus was hoping to get an order at the Dubai Air Industry Show in November. But the UAE group, which received the 100th plane in 2017, abandoned the order and chose to buy 40 Boeing 787-10.
In 2007, Airbus decided to start production of the A380 aircraft capable of accommodating 853 passengers in order to compete with Boeing’s Dreamliner, Europe’s biggest rival.
But it was later found that making a profit from the Airbus A380 required the huge plane to be full, especially because of the huge amount of fuel used by its four engines.
– 10 additional years –
The announcement of the new deal came after Lehigh said Monday that the European aerospace industry would have no choice but to suspend its A380 aircraft if Emirates did not submit a new order.
Lehigh was responding to a question about the future of the giant aircraft, which the group has not received an order for two years, during its presentation in Paris the results of trade group in 2017.
“We are still looking at the UAE, but honestly they are probably the only ones in the market who can afford to buy at least six (planes) annually for eight to ten years,” he said, expressing confidence in the possibility of reaching an agreement on a Gulf company.
“The new order confirms Airbus’ commitment to continue production of A-380+ for at least the next 10 years,” said Lehigh, according to a statement from the Emirates Group.
“I am confident that the Emirates + order will be followed by other orders and that the production of this aircraft will continue in the 1930s.”
Sheikh Ahmed said the new order would provide “stability and continuity to the production line of this type of giant aircraft.”
Airbus, which has sold 222 A380s to 13 airlines since the launch of the model, most notably Emirates, said China would soon make a purchase order after it filed a week ago for an order for 184 A320s for 13 domestic airlines .
Financial markets welcomed the memorandum of understanding with the Emirates Group, with Airbus on Thursday up about 2 percent on the Paris Stock Exchange in midday trading.
Air Transport expert John Strickland told AFP that the deal was a “source of relief” for Airbus, as the A380 would have stopped without it. “The agreement gives the company extra time to try and make deals,” Air Transport expert John Strickland told AFP.